Jousting over Scaffold Law fate

Measure called a job-killer; others say it is a shield for workers

By Casey Seiler

Updated 6:38 am, Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Assm. Francisco Moya, Feb. 11, 2014

Media: Times Union

Albany

Opponents and supporters of state Labor Law 240, better known as the Scaffold Law, came to Albany on Tuesday to engage in lobbying combat. This year's twist for both sides was the law's special impact on the lives of minority contractors and workers.

Scaffold Law places a heavy liability burden on contractors and property owners for a broad class of injuries caused by falls. Critics argue that such "absolute liability" puts businesses in legal peril even in cases where workers are at fault, and drives up insurance costs that are passed to taxpayers and consumers.

Roughly 200 opponents of the law gathered at the Capitol on Tuesday to hear an exhortation from the Rev. Jacques Andre DeGraff of 100 Black Men Inc., who has been enlisted to make the case that Scaffold Law is especially harmful to minority- and women-owned construction firms. Many of the companies have been hired for projects by the New York City School Construction Authority, which has in recent years seen a sharp drop-off in the number of insurers willing to offer liability coverage. The result is higher rates charged by remaining insurers.

More money for insurance costs means less for new construction — as much as $1 billion less statewide, said Brian Sampson, executive director of the fiscally conservative group Unshackle Upstate. He said similar conditions added up to $10,000 to the cost of the average new home in New York.

A few hours later, supporters of the Scaffold Law held a news conference where Queens Assemblyman Francisco Moya pitched the "Construction Insurance Transparency Act of 2014," which would require insurance companies that issue policies covering Scaffold Law claims to file annual financial statements and detailed claim data with the state's Department of Financial Services.

"Opponents of the Scaffold Law frequently claim that the law leads to significant higher liability insurance premiums in the state, but they have no actual data to back that up," Moya said.

The Democratic lawmaker was backed by workers and union leaders who offered their own minority case: Black and Hispanic workers — including a large number of immigrants — make up a larger than proportional chunk of workers in construction and related fields, and would be placed at greater risk if protections were lessened.

Republican state Sen. Patrick Gallivan and Assembly Democratic Majority Leader Joe Morelle have introduced a bill that would adjust Scaffold Law to a "comparative liability" status that would allow builders and property owners to attempt to demonstrate whether a worker's negligence contributed to their injury.